Reygan2
Aquarium Advice Addict
I'm finding brown spots on the inside of my tank and on some decor. Not a huge problem, but what can be done? I'm assuming it's brown algae. I've cleaned it off the glass but it slowly grows back. Snails maybe?
brown algae??
- Thread starter Reygan2
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Scouser
Aquarium Advice Addict
It's better to find the cause than using something to eat it.
What info can you give on the tank?
What info can you give on the tank?
BBradbury
Aquarium Advice Addict
- Joined
- May 24, 2011
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Brown Algae
Good morning Rey...
All healthy tanks have algae. Whether or not it's visible depends on tank conditions. You may just have too many nutrients in the tank and not enough plants to use it.
When I had algae issues, I started replacing at least half the tank water every week. During the water changes, when the water level was low, I'd plant or float stem plants. Water sprite, Water wisteria and Pennywort are some very fast growing stems that will use up the extra nutrients and the algae will start to shrink.
I have a lot of snails in my tanks too and they're great algae eaters.
Don't resort to using "gluteraldehyde" chemicals to kill the algae. It does a very good job, but the dead plant material floating in the tank, will just create more food for the next algae bloom. I used it years ago and some of my Vallisneria, ferns and mosses were damaged.
The key to algae control is to shrink it, not kill it.
B
Good morning Rey...
All healthy tanks have algae. Whether or not it's visible depends on tank conditions. You may just have too many nutrients in the tank and not enough plants to use it.
When I had algae issues, I started replacing at least half the tank water every week. During the water changes, when the water level was low, I'd plant or float stem plants. Water sprite, Water wisteria and Pennywort are some very fast growing stems that will use up the extra nutrients and the algae will start to shrink.
I have a lot of snails in my tanks too and they're great algae eaters.
Don't resort to using "gluteraldehyde" chemicals to kill the algae. It does a very good job, but the dead plant material floating in the tank, will just create more food for the next algae bloom. I used it years ago and some of my Vallisneria, ferns and mosses were damaged.
The key to algae control is to shrink it, not kill it.
B
jcolon
Aquarium Advice Addict
BA results from excess silicas in water which new tanks tend to have a lot of.
In some cases it just goes away on it's own as the silica is used up by the diatoms.
However, if your PWC is from groundwater ... it may contain silica and your BA may never completely go away. I've had starting from one month after my tank was set up and no sign of it going away. Switching to RO water is an option, but deprives your water of necessary nutrients / minerals.
Aside from wiping it off ... Otto's are well know for devouring BA. It's usually not recommended to get a fish just to solve an algae outbreak ... but if after a few months BA doesn't just go away and grows, then you could consider Otto's.
Wy Renegade
Aquarium Advice Addict
99% of the information you're recieving in this thread is spot on. I do have one minor correction however. Diatoms are not a brown algae. Brown algaes, phylum phaephyta, are all multicellulare and marine (i.e. sea weed). Diatoms, phylum bacillariaphyta, are single-celled, occur in both salt and freshwater environments, and have cell walls composed of silica (hence why high silica levels in the water cause this particular algae to bloom). Until recently, diatoms where correctly referred to as golden-brown algae. For what its worth.
OP
OP
Reygan2
Aquarium Advice Addict
Yeah, like I said, it's not over taking the tank or anything. I think planting the tank would be a really good idea. There are several benefits to it according to what I've read. I also tend to get high nitrate readings on occasion, so I do weekly water changes to keep those in check. My last test round I did yesterday was great, but adding plants would keep the nitrate levels down in between pwc's wouldn't it? Oh btw, I really don't think I want snails, I just figured if BA was going to exist, why not include something that could enjoy it
. Thanks for the responses guys.
. Thanks for the responses guys.
jcolon
Aquarium Advice Addict
Correct! ... The "BA" we experience are from Diatoms that use silica to form their walls and not algae like sea-weed. But I doubt we'll (collectively as a group) stop referring to diatoms as "brown algae" anytime soon.
Wy Renegade
Aquarium Advice Addict
Correct! ... The "BA" we experience are from Diatoms that use silica to form their walls and not algae like sea-weed. But I doubt we'll (collectively as a group) stop referring to diatoms as "brown algae" anytime soon.
Probably not, but its always good just to make sure people do understand that they are not a true brown algae
.
aqua_chem
Aquarium Advice Addict
Nerd
Out of curiosity, is this a new tank? New substrates will leech silicates for several weeks/month, causing brown algae. It's just part of a new tank establishing itself.
OP
OP
Reygan2
Aquarium Advice Addict
The tank was cycled around the middle of August, so it's not very old. Could that be the issue?
jcolon
Aquarium Advice Addict
Reygan2 said:
At this point the tank's 3 months old ... I would think most of the silicates in the substrate would be used up by now... But it is still a possibility.
aqua_chem
Aquarium Advice Addict
It depends on that the substrate, the water chemistry, etc, but this should be the tail end of it if thats what's causing it.
